


But home is just a room full of my safest sounds

by Zola206



Series: Family lives (and dies) in the strangest of people [2]
Category: Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Because I write it so there has to be angst, Cheesy, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, I love this father-son relationship, Not A Fix-It, Peter Parker Feels, Some angst, Tony Stark Feels, life and death, like sort of, lots of feelings, you can pry it out of my cold dead hands
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-09
Updated: 2019-07-09
Packaged: 2020-06-25 00:35:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19734811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zola206/pseuds/Zola206
Summary: Tony Stark was dead. He had been for six years. But Peter had passed out and the next thing he knew was that Tony was in front of him, telling Peter to make a choice.*this is not directly connected to other fic in series but some parts of it might make more sense if you read that one*





	But home is just a room full of my safest sounds

**Author's Note:**

> So this is not directly connected to the first fic in the series. It’s just kind of a ‘what if’ scenario. I got the idea for this last night and I literally wrote all of it in one sitting. So sorry if it sucks.

The man who once had shrapnel in his heart now had a choice between Life and Death. He could be selfish and choose to live more, to be able to hold his family for a little while longer. Or he could move on. He could guide and save and still learn to love. He could be selfless.

Tony Stark was always believed to be a selfish prick at heart who never did anything for anyone but himself. No one expected him to choose death.

No one expected him to be selfless.

* * *

Peter doesn’t remember much about the fight. He remembers Green Goblin’s face, screaming (his or someone else’s, Maybe both) and then slamming into rubble. He remembers a weight on his chest and sharp pain as his ribs get crushed by... something. Then he fades. His minds slows and his vision darkens and he doesn’t remember anything else.

Until he wakes up.

Peter is in a white room. White walls, white LED lights, two white chairs, and a white coffee table. He’s not in his suit anymore. Instead he’s in a t-shirt with a science pun on it and black jeans. His hoodie is tied around his waist and his sneakers are clean.

It was something he would’ve worn before The Snap. Before he watched Tony die.

After Tony died Peter went to college, graduated in two years, and took over Stark Industries. Four years later MJ joined him to help run the company while Peter focused on the tech designing. He still went to a lot of meetings, and he wore a lot of suits. Peter can’t remember the last time he had an entire weekend to himself.

He can’t remember the last time he had truly relaxed.

He smiles fondly as he picks at the hem of his shirt. He’s so caught up in his thoughts that he misses someone coming into the room. They clear their throat. Peter looks up from his shoes and his legs almost give out.

It’s Tony. It’s the man who started as a hero to Peter and ended up being a father. It’s the man who inspired Peter so so many years, who kept Peter going and fighting. It’s the man who Peter loved and treated like family. It’s the man that Peter had to watch die. He had to watch his third father figure die. Peter had to mourn again. He hates graveyards and he had to stand at the lake’s edge while watching his ~~mentor~~ _father_ be remembered by an old arc reactor.

It can’t be Tony. Because if it’s Tony than Peter is dead. If Peter is dead, he’s breaking promise after promise after promise. Peter doesn’t break promises.

“Hey Pete,” Tony says. Peter has to sit down then. He sinks into one of the too white chairs and draws a shaky breath while looking at his hands.

“You’re dead.” It’s not a question but Tony nods anyway. “Am I dead? Did I die?” Tony sighs and plops down into the chair opposite of Peter. Peter vaguely registers that the chairs are more comfy than he would have thought for their modern design. He’s pretty sure it’s magic or some other bullshit.

“You’re not exactly dead. You’re in the in between of life and death. You can choose to continue going on with your life. You can continue to fight, to live. Or you can choose to move on into the next life. To guide others through their life and relax. You can rest.” Peter blinked at Tony.

“Did you come here? Did you have a choice?”Tony hesitated in his answer.

“I did.”

That single two word phrase makes Peter stop short. Realistically he knew that Tony probably got a choice. Being the literal savior of the universe should warrant a choice between life or death. Tony deserves that much at least. But a small part of Peter had hoped that Tony hadn’t willing chosen death. That he hadn’t abandoned Peter. That he hadn’t abandoned his family. He had hoped that Tony was just forced into death. That he caught and he caught and caught to be back with Peter, with his family. But to hear that Tony willingly choose to leave them broke something inside of Peter. It was a thing that had been fragile and in the edge of a tall table of sometime now. It had nicks and fissures and small cracks. But Tony saying that he willing choose death over life shattered it.

Peter burst out of his seat. He was so, so angry. It was a white hot fire that burned through his blood. It sent his mind into overdrive and made his hearth race and his younger move like it was on fire.

“Why!? Why would you choose to be so fucking selfish that you would leave us! Why would you abandon your duty as Iron Man!? Why would you leave Stark Industries!? Why would you decide to just fuck off into oblivion for the next millennial and leave us to deal with the rets of your shit! Why would you leave your fucking caught and your goddamn wife alone!?” Peter shouts. Then the fire dies and he’s hollow and aching for something. “Why would you leave me?” Peter’s voice is so small, so helpless and sad and it breaks Tony’s heart.

Tony remembered the boy from Queens who had this truly pure desire to help. He remembers watching the boy grow up and make mistakes and then fix those mistakes. He remembers the boy being so brave and then breaking down once he realized that he wasn’t alone. That he didn’t have to do this alone. He remembers the boy stowing away on a spaceships and insisting to fight, only because he wanted to help. He remembers the boy turning to dust in Tony’s arms.

He remembers fighting tooth and nail to get that boy back. He remembers dying for that boy. If only for the chance that the boy while have a better future. That he will have a good, stable life and settle down with someone.

He remembers choosing death so that he guide the boy (and a young, dark haired girl) when he wouldn’t be able to. He remembers watching to boy become a man. He remembers watching this new man become someone who was better than Tony ever was.

Tony didn’t know how to put it all into words. So he projected it onto to Peter. He told a story, there story, in the form of emotions and memories that played out in Peter’s mind. He knew that Peter would understand why. He wouldn’t like, and he wouldn’t accept it. But he would understand it.

Tony could live with understanding.

Peter started crying silent tears. He never thought that Tony’s love for him could be so vast and so deep. He never knew that Tony had guided him, had helped him when he couldn’t help himself. Tony was a father to him.

Peter stay in silence while he processed. Tony interrupted him after a minute or two. “I know that this is a lot for you to take in Underoos but you have to make a decision on the whole life or death thing. The longer you stay here, to longer you fade into death.” Peter had always been a decisive person. He always knew what he wanted. He didn’t know about this though.

He wanted to keep living. He wanted hold Morgan and have movie night with Pepper and complain about business men to MJ. He wanted to train with Bucky and joke with Clint. He wanted to save people and take pictures with children.

But Peter was tired. He was so tired. He was only twenty-two (twenty-seven if counting his time being dust)but he had already lived a full life. He ran a multi-billion dollar company, saved lives everyday, and was an Avenger. Choosing death would let his relax. He could finally be able to calm down; to breathe.

Peter made his decision quicker than he thought he would. He looked Tony in the eye and smiled. “Thank you, Tony. You gave me everything.” Tony stood up and wrapped his arms around Peter. The hug was warm and comforting. It reminded Peter of coming home.

“Don’t mention it kid. After all, you gave me a family.” And to the both of them a family was a home.

* * *

A hushed voice invaded Peter’s ears. He recognized the fabric underneath him being from a bed in the medical wing and the didn’t beeping keeping track of his heart rate. He slowly opened his eyes to the dim lights of his room.

Pepper and Morgan where sleeping on the couch in the corner of his room. Rhodey was in the armchair next to them. MJ was pacing the floor in front of his bed, on the phone.She was arguing with someone in Japanese.

“I was expecting more of a fan fare when I woke up,” Peter said. MJ whipped around to look at him and he face spilt into a large grin. There was relief in her eyes

“Hey loser,” she breathed out. “If you ever do that to me again I will kill you.” Peter laughed hoarsely. MJ handed him a small cup of water and Peter drank it gladly. Morgan and Pepper were shaken gently awake.

Morgan looked at Peter and let out a shout of joy. The ten year old jumped onto his bed and squeezed him in the best hug they could do while he was attached to all the wires. Pepper smiled and Peter, her eyes glistening.

“Welcome to the land of the living Peter,” he voice was shaky and her eyes were red. She still looked absolutely perfect.

“It’s good be home.” Peter said with a smile. And it was. Even if their home was missing a member, it was still home.

It was still his family.

* * *

In a another timeline, the man who once had shrapnel in his heart chooses life. In that timeline he‘s sitting with his family. He can feel a soft humming, menacing that a hero has made a choice. He shares a look with a not-quite-assassin. They smile at each other, holding a secret between them.

Someone just changed. Someone just chose. Someone just forgave.

Someone just lived.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed!


End file.
